ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE
the nonprofit that oversees the local Safe Routes to School Program .
“ One of the things we found in working with the Sacramento City ( Unified ) School District is that transportation is one of the top three reasons why students are chronically absent ,” Brown says , which affects these students ’ educational attainment and later their adult earnings , thereby also affecting their access to quality health care .
This is what the World Health Organization means when it says , “ The social determinants of health are the conditions in which people are born , grow , live , work and age . These circumstances are shaped by the distribution of money , power and resources .” This is also what ’ s meant by the term institutional racism .
And so the repercussions of how racist policies influenced the built environment have been multigenerational , continuing to compromise the lives of people today in terms of their health and safety , ability to escape the cycle of poverty , and pursuit of the elusive American dream .
Signs of progress
Over the past few years , the City of Sacramento has begun exploring how to undertake inclusive economic development to help right past wrongs , says Elizabeth Boyd , a senior planner . “ The framework of our inclusive economic development is : people , increasing their capacity ; the businesses , helping them thrive ; and the places , each neighborhood being good to live in .” In other words , she says , “ It ’ s
Jackie Cole , inside her Midtown Sacramento apartment with her dog Ollie , is a community organizer and principal of Veritable Good . She is consulting on most of the big environmental-justice-related projects in Sacramento , including the Stockton Blvd Plan and the City of Sacramento ’ s 2040 General Plan . PHOTO BY RYAN ANGEL MEZA
42 comstocksmag . com | November 2020